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REGIONAL ACTIVITIES

The MNLA Board of Directors is engaging members from around the state to participate in local discussions and programs. The Flathead Valley was the first region to meet and successfully work together to create the Nursery Plastics Recycling Program.

Thanks to the generous sponsorship of

Brenda Guild, Montana Gardener, Inc.

of Bigfork, MT for helping bring this program to fruition!
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The Montana Department of Environmental Quality, the Montana Nursery & Landscape Association, and a number of local volunteers have set up a pilot nursery plastics recycling program for the Flathead Valley - the Nursery Plastics Recycling Program.

How the Program Works

What Can Be Recycled?

Plastic tags

Six packs, four packs, pony packs, etc.

3-4-6” plastic pots (also available for re-use)

1 gallon and larger nursery pots (also available for re-use) Any company’s pots, not just plain black

Nursery flats

Greenhouse clear or white poly sheet plastic

Poly or PVC pipe (cannot have metal clamps of any kind). Kindly cut into 4’ lengths to be easier to load our truck

Plumbing unions (no metal clamps of any kind)

Plastic sprinkler heads (no metal parts of any kind)

Plastic baling twine (must be kept separate)

Broken pots or flats - it’s the best way to get rid of them

What Cannot Be Recycled:

Plastic grocery type bags

Typar, Sunbelt or any other woven landscape fabric

Plastic bags from soil amendments or fertilizer

Landscape staples

Any miscellaneous metal (a few metal staples on pots will not matter, but several will)

Any garbage that belongs at the landfill. Rocks, paper tags, lunch debris, cans, etc. Habitual violators will be excluded from this program

Paper or fiber pots UNLESS they are in good condition and reusable

Anything contaminated with petroleum products such as diesel or hydraulic fluid

What You Need To Do:

Educate your crews about this program so they get used to saving recyclable materials

Collect your recyclables at your business until the collection week

Stack and sort materials as neatly as possible so they can be handled quickly

Bring your plastics to one of the drop-off locations during business hours

If you want to palletize your recyclables, please load pallets no more than 4’ high so we can stack them in the truck. We can unload your pallets at both drop-off sites

Plastic Facts

All plastic items contain oil, which is a non-renewable resource. By increasing plastics recycling we can reduce our dependence on petroleum.

Most consumers think that the slow degradation of plastics is the primary reason that plastics should be recycled. But additives contained in plastics are a more serious problem. These additives include colorants, stabilizers and plasticizers that may include toxic components such as lead and cadmium.

Producing new plastic from recycled material uses only two-thirds of the energy required to manufacture it from raw materials.

Recycling 1 ton of plastic can save 1-2 thousand gallons of gas.

For more information on recycling programs and other environmental quality issues, please visit the
Montana Department of Environmental Quality